Dispatched to Southampton

My friend made fun of me when I told him I was heading out to Southampton: 


"Only YOU could bitch about having to go to Southampton and having a home all to yourself."

Maybe he was right. I wasn't bitching in the sense of "whoa is me", I was bitching because I knew I had meetings coming up in the city and on the outset I thought the 80 miles or so wouldn't be too bad. I was used to doing the LA -Palm Springs trip and that was 120. But, Los Angeles to Palm Springs is a straight shot on the 10 freeway.

What I didn't realize, is that the county road once you got off the interstate is just that:  A County Road.

Once I got on the county road, the landscape changed dramatacially. This was country.

I stopped at the first food shop I could find on the way in - The Clamman . Of course it was called the Clamman,

I was in awe by all of the seafood, and in awe at how inexpensive it was. This is Southampton?

I have vague memories of going clamming with my parents - or was it with my Mother? Was it Fire Island? Or was it France? The last time I was here , was in my twenties and I went sailing. Other than that, I was never one of those crazed girls getting on the Jitney to get their 1/4 of a share for the summer. Never appealed to me. Never will.

Cute name, right? I mean, when in Rome...

The shrimp were actually pink. 

Steamers! 

After picking up soup at The Clamman, I found a supermarket down the road to get some basics.

And there was this:

Nothing but canned fish. Canned crab. Salmon. Shrimp. Tuna. Herring. Mackerel. Sardines. Anchovies. Oysters. Clams. More Clams. Three different kinds of bottled clam juice. Did I say Clams?

I love the old school design.  Though, West Coast trumps in display.

By the way - for whatever reason,  after seafood, it's ALL about the Bacon. Order a soup, there will be bacon. Order a salad, bacon. 

In this market, two tall displays of bacon pieces flanked the canned fish section.

When was the last time you saw bacon pieces? HUH? Really?